Most of the people have a fear of a dentist as dental treatments are one of the most painful treatments.
People try to avoid dental treatments due to tiresome and lengthy procedures.due to this fear and lack of awareness for dental health, there are some myths popular in our society.
- The more you brush, the healthier your teeth will be.
Ideal time for brushing is 2-3 minutes. Over brushing may lead to abrasion of teeth due to abrasive effect of toothpaste.
The technique of brushing is more important for healthier teeth.
- If there is no any visible problem or pain in teeth, I don't have to visit a dentist.
People always give an excuse about their negligence towards their dental health, that they don't have to visit a dentist as they don't have pain .
But this is not the correct approach.
Ideally you should visit your dentist every 6 months for routine check up so that if you have any dental problem that you cannot see, can be diagnosed and treated accordingly.
Teeth whitening may damage my enamel.
With the evolution of new technology, there are no any side effects to tooth structure during teeth whitening procedure.
So you don't need to worry about damage to tooth structure.
- You should avoid dental treatment during pregnancy.
I always advice my patients to complete all their required dental treatments before delivery so that there are no chances of any emergency during those busy days after delivery.
It is just that we have to consider the side effects of any medicine used in the treatment. Otherwise the treatment itself has no any side effects.
- Sugar is the only cause of dental cavities.
Sugar itself doesn't cause dental cavities but the reaction of sugar with bacterias produces acid which damages tooth structure and leads to dental cavities.
So limiting the growth of bacterias may reduce the chances of cavities.
- You don't have to worry about your kid's baby teeth as they are going to shed anyway.
With the increase in use of chocolates, pastries, junk food and sweets amongst children, there has been much increase in the cases of dental cavities and kids have to suffer from pain and trouble eating at early age and they have to undergo painful dental treatments.
But if parents have awareness about dental cavities and oral hygiene, these problems can be avoided.
We have to take care of baby teeth as they start shedding at the age of 6 and decayed baby teeth may also damage the permenant teeth.
- Loosing weight may affect the fit of the denture.
Fit of the denture depends upon the size and shape of the bony ridge and has no any relation with the weight of the person.
- If gums are bleeding, brushing should be avoided.
Bleeding gums are most of the times due to improper oral hygiene leading to plaque retention alongside the gum line.
If brushing is not done, amount of plaque may increase leading to worsening of the situation.
- Brushing before the dental appointment will make the dentist not notice that regular and proper brushing is not done.
Dental hygiene is not a thing which can come from brushing only once or brushing before dental appointment.
Maintenance of dental health requires a lot of efforts and regular care which is easily seen by professional dentist during your dental check-up.